Funding increased for teen pregnancy program

Darcie LorenoPublished: June 6, 2006 12:00AM

By DARCIE LORENO
T-G Staff Writer
Ashland County Department of Job and Family Services officials announced proposals received and tentative fiscal year 2007 contracts for four programs Monday, with funding for some at higher levels than last year.
Ashland Parenting Plus submitted the only proposal for the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program. The agency also ran the program last year, but for 2007, funding will be increased from $125,000 to $160,000. The higher funding will help serve more and go toward an additional parent education component, said Gary Hannan, JFS executive director.
Its been a highly successful program in Ashland County, Hannan said, adding the unwed birthrate has reduced significantly.
Funding for the Workforce Investment Act Youth Program increased from $135,000 to $150,000, with extra funding to serve more school and out of school youth, Hannan said. Catholic Charities submitted the only proposal and did operate the program last year.
Catholic Charities also submitted a proposal for the Kinship Navigator program, which provides referral support and respite for family caregivers, currently run through Family and Childrens First Council. Funding will be $50,000. Hannan said even though the program will be run through a different agency, the proposal closely reflects the current program.
For Juvenile Diversion, meant to divert juveniles from becoming involved or reinvolved with the court system, one proposal was received by the prosecutors office, which currently runs the program. Funding will be $80,000, the same amount as last year.
The programs will operate during fiscal year 2007. The contracts used to be mandated by the state, but the county opts to continue them each year, Hannan said. Costs for all but the WIA Youth Program is with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funding. The youth program is paid for with WIA funding.
In other business, Crystal Stull and her father, Dick Stull, presented commissioners with facts regarding Lyme disease in their quest to educate the public. Crystal, her daughter and her granddaughter all have Lyme disease.
A lot of people are not acknowledging there is Lyme disease here in Ohio, Crystal Stull said.
You can get a shot for your dog or cat, but you cant for your kids, Dick Stull said.
The Stulls work led to the adoption of May 2006 as Lyme Disease Awareness Month, but the designation is only good for 2006, Crystal said. But they are trying to make it an ongoing thing.
Dick Stull said the basic culprits of Lyme disease are deer ticks, which are as small as the tip of a pencil. Its often misdiagnosed in adults as Multiple Sclerosis and in children as Attention Deficit Disorder, they said.
Crystal Stull said the disease is treated with antibiotics. There are seperate treatments for the more than 64 symptoms of the disease, she said. She also said there are more than 200 symptoms or diseases Lyme disease can be mistaken for.
In other business, commissioners approved the hire of an income maintenance aid II at the Ashland County Department of Job and Family Services. They also announced the regular meeting Thursday will begin at 8:15 a.m. rather than 9:30 a.m.
n Darcie Loreno can be reached at 419-281-0581 ext. 237 or at dloreno@times-gazette.com.